Reusable bag container

ABSTRACT

A reusable bag container is described, including a reusable bag, a sheath forming a substantially cylindrical shape, the sheath being used to store the reusable bag in an interior vestibule of the sheath, wherein a distal end of the sheath is configured to fit within a proximal opening of a holder, and an opening disposed at a proximal end of the sheath, the opening being configured to allow addition or removal of the reusable bag from the interior vestibule formed by the sheath.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to bags and, more specifically, to areusable bag container.

BACKGROUND

Sacks and bags (“bags”) are typically used to hold items for variouspurposes. Conventional bags are constructed or made of paper pulp,paper, recycled paper, plastic, and other materials. In various shapesand sizes, conventional bags are useful for holding, wrapping, andcarrying items, such as groceries or items purchased from a store.However, conventional bags are also problematic, expensive,environmentally hazardous, and difficult to store and carry.

Some conventional bags are constructed or made from paper and paperpulp. In some cases, paper may be recycled from reused pulp and newpaper bags may be produced. However, when soiled or wet, conventionalpaper bags may become structurally unsound and weaken, thus reducing oreliminating carrying ability and strength. Further, there aresignificant costs associated with recycling paper bags, including thepurchase, installation, and use of recycling equipment and chemicals,personnel training, and chemical treatment or remediation of wastewater, which are typically toxic activities. Even more problematic,conventional plastic bags are manufactured in large quantities, but endusers such as food, grocery, package, department, specialty, and retailstores must allocate a portion of their operating budgets to purchase,brand, and store plastic bags. Further, after being used, plastic bagsare typically not recyclable and are therefore discarded, thuscontributing to large amounts of non-recycled garbage and trash that isnon-biodegradable and, thus, an inherent threat to the environment.While conventional paper bags and some plastic bags may be recycled,when discarded altogether, substantial unnecessary waste accrual,leaching of toxic chemicals, asphyxiation, and other harmful effects canoccur.

Some conventional solutions are reusable bags made of durable materialssuch as textiles and synthetic fibers. Environmentally sound and oftenmade of biodegradable fibers or materials, reusable bags can be cleanedand re-used, but are often forgotten or stored in inconvenientlocations. For example, reusable bags may be stored in other sacks orbags, placed in automobile trunks or other spaces, left in inconvenientlocations, or otherwise placed where usage is hindered or precludedaltogether. Further, conventional solutions for storing and holdingreusable bags such as sacks or tote bags are often bulky anduncomfortable or inconvenient to carry, which further precludes wideradoption and usage of reusable bags.

Thus, a solution for storing reusable bags without the limitations ofconventional techniques is required.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be readily understood by the followingdetailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, andlike reference numerals designate like structural elements.

FIG. 1 is a front view of an exemplary reusable bag container;

FIG. 2 is a side view of an exemplary reusable bag container in acollapsed state;

FIG. 3 is another side view of an exemplary reusable bag container in acollapsed state;

FIG. 4 is an alternative view of an exemplary reusable bag container;

FIG. 5 is another alternative view of an exemplary reusable bagcontainer;

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of an exemplary reusable bag container;

FIG. 7A is a view of an exemplary reusable bag container in a holder;

FIG. 7B is a view of an alternative exemplary reusable bag container ina holder; and

FIG. 7C is another view of an alternative exemplary reusable bagcontainer in a holder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments or examples of the invention may be implemented in numerousways, including as an apparatus, system, or process. A detaileddescription of one or more examples is provided below along withaccompanying figures. The detailed description is provided in connectionwith such examples, but is not limited to any particular example. Thescope is limited by the claims, but numerous alternatives,modifications, and equivalents are encompassed. Numerous specificdetails are set forth in the following description in order to provide athorough understanding. These details are provided for the purpose ofexample and the descriptions provided may be used for implementationaccording to the claims without some or all of these specific details.For the purpose of clarity, technical material that is known in thetechnical fields related to the examples has not been described indetail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description.

Various alternative implementations and modifications to the examplesprovided may be used and are not limited to the descriptions,dimensions, or other exemplary details provided herein.

A reusable bag container is described, including, in some examples, areusable bag including a sheath configured to form a substantiallycylindrical shape. In some examples, a reusable bag may be formed fromflexible, rigid, or semi-rigid materials such as wood, plastic, metal,glass, textiles, synthetic polymers (e.g., nylon, Sorona®, Gore-Tex®,Supplex®, Kevlar®, and others), fabrics, fibers, alloys (e.g., titanium,molybdenum, and the like) composites (e.g., carbon fiber, and others),or others. Reusable bags and a reusable bag container may also beimplemented using reusable and recycled materials, such as reclaimedplastic, wood, pulp, or other materials. The material used to implementreusable bag containers as described is not intended as a limitation andvarious types, sizes, compositions, and quantities of materials may beused. In other examples, a reusable bag may be stuffed, inserted, orotherwise placed into an interior vestibule of a rigid, semi-rigid, orflexible (i.e., collapsible) sheath, with an adjustable opening providedat a proximal end. An adjustable opening may be configured to allowaddition or removal of one or more reusable bags. In other examples, areusable bag container may be used to hold, store, or dispense reusableor other bags for use when carrying or storing items, such as groceriesand other items, thus precluding the use of non-reusable bags oravoiding the use of environmentally-unsound or unsafe bags such assingle-use plastic bags and the like. Further, reusable bags may bestored in a reusable bag container and hand-carried, stored in a holder(e.g., cup holder, beverage holder, car beverage holder, and others) andconveniently placed to allow a user when, for example, driving to agrocery store to conveniently and quickly retrieve one or more reusablebags or the whole reusable bag container. Further, a reusable bagcontainer may be hand-carried to a point-of-sale (i.e., cashier,check-out line, and the like), for example, providing a convenient andcompact way to retrieve reusable bags for immediate use. In otherexamples, a reusable bag container may be implemented differently and isnot limited to the examples provided.

FIG. 1 is a front view of an exemplary reusable bag container. Here,reusable bag container (“container”) 102 includes opening 104, base 106,stitches 108-116, drawstring 118, lock 120, and trigger 122. In someexamples, container 102 may be used to store reusable bags (not shown)that are placed (i.e., stuffed or stored) within an interior vestibuleof container 102. An interior vestibule (not shown) of container 102 maybe a space or other area within the interior of container 102. In otherwords, reusable bags may be placed or inserted into the interior tocontainer 102 within an interior vestibule formed by the material orstructure of container 102 and base 106, regardless of the type ofmaterial or fabric (e.g., textile, cloth, wood, metal, glass, alloy,composites, fibers, and the like). In some examples, material used toform container 102 may be formed as a collapsible sheath that expands asreusable bags are stored within. In other examples, container 102 may beformed from materials to create a rigid or semi-rigid shell for storingand dispensing reusable bags (not shown). In still other examples,container 102 may be implemented differently and is not limited to thedescriptions provided. Here, a collapsible sheath may, as an example, becylindrical or substantially cylindrical in shape and designed andfabricated to various dimensions. Reusable bags may have differentdimensions and, when placed within an interior vestibule of container102, may be extracted for different purposes at different times.Further, reusable bags may be cleaned and re-used, without beingdiscarded after each use. When container 102 has one or more reusablebags stored within it (i.e., within an interior vestibule of container102), container 102 may form a cylindrical or substantially cylindricalshape. Base 106 may be configured (i.e., cut, sewn, shaped, traced,patterned, or otherwise formed) to allow container 102 to form asubstantially cylindrical shape that, in some examples, may beconfigured for insertion into a cup holder, beverage holder, or othertype of holder that may slidably engage the exterior material ofcontainer 102. Thus, frictional forces may be used to grasp the exteriormaterial of container 102 and, when a reusable bag is extracted orretrieved from opening 104, container 102 remains slidably engaged withthe cup holder, beverage holder, or other type of holder. In otherexamples, the exterior material of container 102 may expand whenreusable bags are inserted into an interior vestibule of container 102.Exterior material (e.g., parachute silk, nylon, ripstop nylon, or othercomposite or blended natural or synthetic fabrics and textiles) mayexpand and, thus, slidably engage a holder. In some examples, “slidablyengage” may refer to container 102 gripping, contacting, or otherwiseadhering to another surface. In other examples, “slidably engage” mayrefer to container 102 gripping, contacting, or otherwise adhering toanother surface and, when a reusable or other type of bag is extractedor retrieved, container 102 remains engaged within another holder. Instill other examples, “slidably engage” may vary and is not limited tothe examples provided.

Here, container 102 may be constructed, fabricated, manufactured,stitched, or otherwise made from natural or synthetic textiles, yarn, orfibers (e.g., cotton, wool, nylon, ripstop nylon, silk, parachute silk,hemp, angora, cashmere, flax, jute, spandex, polyester, blends,microfibers, and others). Various types of natural, synthetic, orcomposite textiles, yarn, or fibers (“material”) may be used forcontainer 102, base 106, stitches 108-116, and drawstring 120, which arenot limited to the examples provided. Further, fibers and microfibers ofvarying dimensions (e.g., denier or less than one denier in thickness)may be used and are also not intended to limit any implementation.Likewise, lock 120 may be implemented using plastic, metal (e.g.,aluminum, steel, alloys, iron, composites, and others), wood, or othersto provide a spring-loaded locking mechanism that, when trigger 122 isdepressed, a transverse channel is opened to allow drawstring 118 tofreely traverse. In other words, by pressing lock 120 and trigger 122together, drawstring 118 may be lengthened by pulling, whichsubsequently closes opening 104. Alternatively opening 104 may bewidened by allowing drawstring 118 to pass through lock 120, allowinginsertion (i.e., stuffing) or retrieval of reusable bags from container102. Stitches 108-114 may be used to create a circumferential channel,housing, or pocket for drawstring 118, thus allowing opening 104 to bevaried in diameter and shape when drawn through lock 120. Further,fewer, more, or different types of stitches may be used to create acircumferential channel, housing, or pocket for drawstring 118.Container 102 may be implemented using fewer, more, or differentelements than those shown and is not limited to the examples provided.

FIG. 2 is a side view of an exemplary reusable bag container in acollapsed state. Here, side view 200 illustrates container 102 (i.e., ina “collapsed” or empty state), base 106, stitches 108-116, drawstring118, lock 120, trigger 122, and side stitch 202. In some examples,container 102, with the exception of base 106, may be formed from asingle or monolithic pattern or amount of fabric and coupled togetherusing side stitch 202. When reusable or other types of bags are insertedor placed into an interior vestibule of container (i.e., through opening104 (not shown)), container 102 expands to a cylindrical orsubstantially cylindrical shape with dimensions (e.g., circumference,radius, or diameter) determined by base 106. In other words, container102 may expand to the radius or lateral radius of base 106. In otherexamples, container 102 may be composed of stretchable or expandablematerial such that the sides of container 102 may expand beyond theradius or diameter of base 106. In still other examples, container 102may be composed of collapsible material that, when reusable or othertypes of bags are placed in an interior vestibule of container 102,expands to a height, width, and radius of a cylindrical or substantiallycylindrical shape. Still further, container 102 may be implemented,designed, patterned, shaped, or otherwise formed differently, forexample, using horizontal, diagonal, transverse, or other types ofstitches apart from side stitch 202. Container 102 may be implementedusing fewer, more, or different elements than those shown and is notlimited to the examples provided.

FIG. 3 is another side view of an exemplary reusable bag container in acollapsed state. Here, side view 300 includes container 102 (i.e., in a“collapsed” or empty state), base 106, stitches 108-116, and drawstring118. Side view 300 may be, for example, a view of the opposite side ofside view 200. Stitches 108-110 may be used, for example, to providereinforcement to opening 104 (FIGS. 1-2) and to allow the outer edges ofmaterial forming container 102 to be folded inward and used to create apocket for drawstring 118. Here, a pocket may also be generated usingone or more of stitches 108-114. Further, fewer, more, or differenttypes and numbers of stitches may be used and are not limited to theexamples shown. In other examples, container 102 may be implementedusing fewer, more, or different elements than those shown and is notlimited to the examples provided.

FIG. 4 is an alternative view of an exemplary reusable bag container.Here, container 102 is shown, including opening 104, base 106, stitch116, drawstring 118, lock 120, trigger 122, and reusable bag 402. A cutway view of container 102 is shown, including revealingpartially-inserted reusable bag 402. Here, reusable bag 402 is shownwith dual handles protruding from opening 104. When withdrawn fromcontainer 102, reusable bag 402 may be used to carry or hold items.Further, reusable bag 402 may be one of several bags that are stuffed,placed, or otherwise stored within container 102. The number of reusablebags may be varied and is not limited to any specific quantity. Reusablebag 402 (i.e., when stored within container 102) may cause the externalsurface or exterior sides of container 102 to “bulge” or expand beyondthe diameter of base 106, allowing for additional reusable bags similarto or different than reusable bag 402 to be inserted within container102. Further, drawstring 118 may be operated to open (i.e., widen,expand, and the like) or close (i.e., narrow, contract, tighten, and thelike) opening 104. In other examples, container 102, reusable bag 402and the other above-described elements may be varied and are not limitedin design, operation, dimensions, or function to the descriptionsprovided.

FIG. 5 is another alternative view of an exemplary reusable bagcontainer. Here, container 102 is shown with opening 104, base 106,stitch 116, drawstring 118, lock 120, trigger 122, and lock channel 502.In some examples, reusable bags (e.g., reusable bag 402 (FIG. 4)) may bestored within container 102, which may be closed or substantially sealedusing lock 120 and trigger 122. If expandable, collapsible material isused to form container 102, then reusable bags stored within (i.e., inan interior vestibule of) container 102 may cause the sides of container102 to expand outwards beyond the radius of base 106. Thus, container102 may be conformed or deformed to slidably engage, for example, some,all, or none of container 102 into a holder and grip the sides thereof.When lock 120 and trigger 122 are pressed together, drawstring 118 maytraverse lock channel 502 to modify the diameter or size of opening 104,thus permitting reusable bag (402; FIG. 4) to be extracted or insertedwithin. Thus, container 102 may be used to store reusable bag 402.Likewise, container 102 may be placed in, for example, a car beverageholder (not shown) and, upon arriving at a store, for example, reusablebag 402 may be extracted and taken in to the store and used to carrygoods or purchased items. Container 102 may also be hand-carried in itsentirety and, as another example, placed in a beverage holder within ashopping cart and, upon arriving at a checkout stand, reusable bag 402,may be extracted and used to carry goods or purchased items out.Numerous other examples and implementation scenarios may involve usingcontainer 102, reusable bag 402, and the above-described elements andare not limited to those provided.

FIG. 6 is a bottom view of an exemplary reusable bag container. Here,container 102 includes stitch 116, drawstring 118, lock 120, trigger122, and base 602. In some examples, base 602 may be substantiallysimilar to base 106 (FIGS. 1-5). In other examples, base 602 may beimplemented differently than base 106 (FIGS. 1-5) and is not limited tothe descriptions provided. Here, a side/bottom view of container 102 isshown with one or more reusable or other types of bags stored in aninterior vestibule to container 102. Base 602 is sewn or stitched to theexterior material of container 102 using stitches 116. When reusable bag402 (FIG. 4) is inserted, stuffed, placed, or otherwise stored withincontainer 102, the exterior material may expand to the radius ordiameter of base 602. In some examples, if the exterior material ofcontainer 102 is flexible (e.g., silk, polyester, nylon, blends (i.e.,materials composed of a blend of natural and/or synthetic fibers) andothers), then container 102 may expand beyond the diameter of base 602in order to accommodate a plurality of reusable bags (e.g., reusable bag402 (FIG. 4)) and expand to slidably engage a holder when container 102is slid or inserted into a holder (e.g., cup or beverage holder or othersimilar compartment). In other examples, container 102 and base 602 maybe implemented differently and are not limited to the examples shown anddescribed.

FIG. 7A is a view of an exemplary reusable bag container in a holder.Here, holder 702 is shown, including container 704, which is partiallyinserted into holder 702 and slidably engaged with inner surface 706.Opening 104, drawstring 118, lock 120, and trigger 122 are also shown.The size, shape, and dimensions of holder 702 may be varied and are notlimited to the examples shown. In some examples, container 704 may besubstantially similar to container 102 (FIGS. 1-6) and may beimplemented using materials and fabrics such as those described above.As an example, container 704 may include one or more reusable bags(e.g., reusable bag 402 (FIG. 4)) and inserted (i.e., slidably engaged)with inner surface 706 of holder 702, which may be a car cup holder,shopping cart beverage holder, or other type of holder beyond theexamples described herein. However, when used with reusable bags,discarded plastic and paper bags may be minimized or altogether avoided.Further, several reusable bags may be transported using container 704,which is configured to slidably engage the inner surface of holder 702in, for example, an automobile. Thus, numerous carrying bags (i.e.,reusable bags) may be stored and transported in a compact shape usingcontainer 704. Further, after usage, reusable bag 402 (not shown) may becleaned and stored in container 704 for another, future use. Theabove-described examples may be varied and are not limited to thedescriptions, parameters, uses, or functions provided.

FIG. 7B is a view of an alternative exemplary reusable bag container ina holder. Here, holder 702 has reusable bag container 710 placed withinit. In some examples, reusable bag container has top 712 and opening714, in which reusable bags may be inserted or extracted. Variousmaterials may be used to form reusable bag container 710, which may be arigid or semi-rigid structure that does not require collapsing orflexibility. Materials such as wood, plastic, metal, alloys, composites,and others may be used to form reusable bag container 710, which may beplaced and stored in holder 702, which may be, for example, a carbeverage holder or shopping cart cup holder. In other examples,different shapes, sizes, dimensions, and other parameters may be used toimplement reusable bag container 710, which is not limited to theexamples provided.

FIG. 7C is another view of an alternative exemplary reusable bagcontainer in a holder. Here, holder 702 includes reusable bag container712, which has opening 714. As an example of a different rigid orsemi-rigid structure that may be configured to store reusable bags,reusable bag container 712 may be implemented using materials such aswood, plastic, metal, alloys, composites, and others. Reusable bags maybe extracted or inserted from opening 714, which may be the open end(e.g., proximal, distal) of reusable bag container 712. Other types,shapes, and sizes may be used to implement reusable bag container 712,which is not limited to the examples provided.

Although the foregoing examples have been described in detail forpurposes of clarity of understanding, certain changes and modificationsmay be practiced within the scope of the appended claims. Accordingly,the present examples are to be considered as illustrative and notrestrictive, and not limited to the details given herein and may bemodified within the scope and equivalents of the appended claims. In theclaims, elements and/or steps do not imply any particular order ofoperation, unless explicitly stated in the claims.

1. A reusable bag system, comprising: one or more reusable bags; and acontainer configured to house the one or more reusable bags, wherein thecontainer conforms to a substantially cylindrical shape when the one ormore reusable bags are housed within the container, the substantiallycylindrical shape being configured to slidably engage the container witha holder and, when a force is provided to extract at least one of theone or more reusable bags from the container, the container remainsslidably engaged with the holder.
 2. The reusable bag system of claim 1,further comprising an adjustable opening disposed at a proximal end ofthe container.
 3. The reusable bag system of claim 1, wherein thematerial is nylon.
 4. The reusable bag system of claim 1, wherein thematerial is silk.
 5. The reusable bag system of claim 1, wherein thematerial comprises natural fibers.
 6. The reusable bag system of claim1, wherein the material comprises synthetic fibers.
 7. A container,comprising: a collapsible sheath comprised of a memory material, thememory material being adapted to form a substantially cylindrical shapewhen one or more reusable bags are stuffed into an interior vestibuleformed by the collapsible sheath; a base coupled to a distal end of thecollapsible sheath, the base having a substantially circular shape andbeing configured to identify a radius of the collapsible sheath; and anadjustable opening provided at a proximal end of the collapsible sheath,the adjustable opening being configured to allow addition or removal ofthe one or more reusable bags from the interior vestibule formed by thecollapsible sheath.
 8. The container of claim 7, wherein the memorymaterial comprises nylon.
 9. The container of claim 7, wherein thememory material is a polymer.
 10. The container of claim 7, wherein thememory material is synthetic.
 11. The container of claim 7, wherein thememory material is natural.
 12. The container of claim 7, wherein thememory material comprises natural and synthetic fibers.
 13. Thecontainer of claim 7, wherein the collapsible sheath is configured toslidably engage a holder when the substantially cylindrical shape isformed by inserting the one or more reusable bags into the interiorvestibule of the collapsible sheath.
 14. The container of claim 13,wherein the holder is a cupholder.
 15. The container of claim 13,wherein the holder is a car beverage holder.
 16. A reusable bagcontainer, comprising: a reusable bag; a sheath forming a substantiallycylindrical shape, the sheath being used to store the reusable bag in aninterior vestibule of the sheath, wherein a distal end of the sheath isconfigured to fit within a proximal opening of a holder; and an openingdisposed at a proximal end of the sheath, the opening being configuredto allow addition or removal of the reusable bag from the interiorvestibule formed by the sheath.
 17. The container of claim 16, whereinthe sheath comprises a rigid structure.
 18. The container of claim 16,wherein the sheath comprises a semi-rigid structure.
 19. The containerof claim 16, wherein the sheath comprises a flexible structure, theflexible structure being configured to collapse when the reusable bag isextracted from the interior vestibule.
 20. The container of claim 16,wherein the sheath is configured to slidably engage a holder when thesubstantially cylindrical shape is inserted into the holder, the sheathbeing configured to exert a radial frictional force to engage an innersurface of the holder.